The winter vacation was but a short break in the constant bickering between the two major partners in the ruling coalition: the democrats and the liberals.

Now, with renewed zest, they launched new statements heating up the fight once more.

Sorin Frunzaverde, deputy head of the Democrat Party, started the year with words to that effect: he said the government needed to be streamlined to a maximum of 16 ministries.

This sounded like a renewed declaration of war in the ears of the National Liberal Party members, who saw the democrats for the past two years attempt prompting early elections in order to get rid of the PNL leader Calin Popescu Tariceanu from his prime-ministership.

However, Frunzaverde himself put those fears at ease, stating that early elections were no longer an option, at least not before the elections for the European Parliament would take place. "After this electoral test we will see what other alliances may be possible with the right-wing parties," Frunzaverde said.

PD executive president Adriean Videanu stated to the Mediafax wire service that if a government reshuffle would occur, then "it would be right for the Liberal Democrat Party to take one ministry." sPLD is a splinter group of formerly PL members, who felt closer politically to the PNL.t

However, a few hours later from his first statement, Videanu issued a press release in which watered down his initial remarks, saying he meant "PLD should support a parliament majority, and not take governmental office proper."

For their part, the liberals said "no way," stating that PLD could take up government office only if becoming PNL members, according to the PNL deputy president Puiu Hasotti.

But the democrats might not give up so easily their whish to oust the liberals from the ruling coalition, and attempt to achieve that with stating that the PLD ha